Megan Nechanicky

With all talk turned to brackets, upsets, game-winning shots and Cinderella stories, it’s hard to get through March knowing the NCAA basketball tournament is underway. Even though I don’t have much time to sit down to watch a game in its entirety, it’s impossible to avoid watching parts of games when I’m in a house full of brothers. I happened to see a night early on in the tournament with a huge upset of Lehigh over Duke.

 
The game was extremely fun to watch, and had to be indescribable as a player on either side of the court. As someone that spends every day promoting health, one thing stood out to me so clearly.  Not for a minute were these players thinking about getting in their 20, 30, 60 or 90 minutes of daily exercise. They were so focused on the game that they most likely didn’t even realize that they were exercising, other than the fact that they were breathing hard, their legs were exhausted and their jerseys were drenched in sweat. These young men were playing with such intensity and grit down to the very last buzzer. They were clearly playing a “game” that took strategy, training, teamwork and was also a lot of fun (if you won, of course!).

 
This same week, I had the opportunity to attend and work two youth-based athletic events. The first was a “Mini Olympics” to highlight the upcoming 2012 Summer Olympics in London with the First Ladies from the US and UK. I acted as the “Captain” of two teams and took the kids around to sports stations where, based on their performance, they earned points for their school. These middle schoolers displayed such intensity and determination as they ran relay races, shot baskets, hit tennis balls, and kicked goals. They were so focused on the “game” that they never complained, never wanted to rest and never wanted to end.

One of the teams at the Let's Move! Mini Olympics

The second event I stood at the finish line of the ING Kids Rock one-mile race and celebrated the runners with huge smiles as they crossed the line. The kindergarten through 6th graders were so excited to wear their orange shirts, run with classmates, have cheering fans and be honored at the finish with medals.  They weren’t thinking about how hard it was to run the mile or that their legs were tired or they were out of breath. This was a race, they had their teachers and parents cheering and they wanted to cross over the line.

Start line of the one-miler ING Kids Rock race.

This past week at my tennis lesson, I was playing doubles and the last game would never end. Deuce, add out, deuce, add in, deuce, etc.  As the sun began to set and the clock ticked closer to 7:30 pm, my pro Fred said we would call it a game.  Being extremely competitive, I quickly yelled out that tennis never ends in a tie and there was no way I was walking away from this game.  Fred allowed us to keep playing and the game did eventually end a few points later. In the intensity of the game, my focus was not on getting home or what I was planning to eating for dinner or all the work I needed to get done. I wanted to keep playing.

 
From NCAA basketball, to mini-Olympics, to one-mile road races to my own tennis match, these are all games that bring so much fun while also getting in a whole lot of fitness. One does not need to be a college athlete or Olympian to play. Exercise does not need to be dreadful and timed to the very minute. Learn to play and you might actually get to the point where you don’t want to stop (even if the sun is setting). Create your own fitness fun and don’t ever stop.

Post play in my tennis whites.

Ever since starting my dietetic internship in October, I’ve felt like a juggler in the circus. I’ve been working desperately to keep all my balls (or jobs) in the air while not letting anything drop. I was working 7 days a week, and spending my weekends either volunteering in the community, giving presentations or work on assignments. I would arrive back at the office or hospital on Monday morning feeling like it was the middle of the week and wondering if I ever get a break.

 
I knew this schedule would be nearly impossible to maintain for the next year, so I decided to give myself Saturdays off. I was thrilled when the next Saturday rolled around and I would have what I like to call “Megan Time”. To my surprise, I found myself not knowing what I even liked to do. To me running errands, washing clothes and fitting in my daily workout does not classify as “Megan Time”. I asked myself the question, “What would you really like to do for enjoyment”? After some reflection, I decided I wanted to play tennis.

 
I played a little tennis as a child and would go to a few summer camps and took some lessons here and there. What I remember most was playing the game Queen of the Court and always wanting to win so I could receive the prize….a can of soda! This was a big deal since my mom never allowed soda in our house.  Since childhood, I picked up a racquet again a few years ago while living in San Diego and played with a girlfriend after morning swim practices. We were at the perfect skill level for each other and loved our “Ladies of Leisure” mornings. Being back on the east coast, I haven’t thought much about getting back into a tennis playing routine.

 
Since I now decided I wanted to play, I had to find my way to a court. I looked up winter programs in my area and quickly found there were many possibilities. I settled on a Thursday evening beginner skills program at Georgetown Prep High School and was excited to once again sport my white pleated tennis skirt. When Thursday evening came, it took everything in my power to actually get to the lesson. I was tired, it was cold, and the only thing I wanted to do after work was drink a Starbucks and relax at home.

 
Following the first class, I was hooked! Having a great instructor, being around new people and learning a semi-new skill felt exhilarating. I hadn’t smiled as much as I did that night in months. I've returned to lessons each week and was thrilled last week when we had the chance to play Queen of the Court. This time around I wasn’t playing for the soda, but for the sweetness of competing and doing something that brings me pure enjoyment.

This past weekend I had the pleasure of watching one of the greatest golfers of all time compete at the AT&T Nationals tournament—Tiger.  As an athlete, I find it thrilling to watch one of the best in the sport in person.  I went to Congressional Country Club in DC with my friend Tyler who has played and taught golf almost his entire life. Even among the huge crowds, Tyler was able to direct me to Tiger’s locations, and I even had clear views of his shots.

I recently read about Tiger’s training regimen, which includes running and various cross-training exercise modalities.  It’s clear that he is in phenomenal shape just by looking at the bulging veins in his forearms.  However, as I walked the course, I couldn’t help but notice the many out-of-shape onlookers struggling to follow their favorite players. Watching a golf tournament requires a lot of walking—on uneven surfaces, up and down hills, and through crowds.

As I approached the driving range I overheard a young man say to his friend, “You want to go to the back 9?  I can’t do the back 9.” This man was severely overweight.  Unfortunately, despite the fact that his friend wanted to watch Tiger on the last 9 holes, he himself could not physically do it. It struck me that the majority of people in the US will never be as skilled as Tiger.  However, each one of us has the ability to treat our bodies well enough to be in physical shape to watch Tiger in person—on all 18 holes.

Studying the field of exercise and nutrition, I am reminded every day of the increase of Americans’ inactivity.  There is an epic number of overweight and obese people in our country. This past weekend I had the opportunity to take a trip to Park City, Utah to ski with three fabulous friends and was exposed to a population in tune with health and fitness!

Shannon is a new Utah ski-season resident, Helene is a forty something self-described desk jockey who hadn’t skied in 12 years and Virginia is a 12 year old ice-skater and lacrosse star who has only skied once before. I hadn’t seen snow in 3 years—the last time was during a ski vacation in Colorado. Needless to say, the 3 of us out-of-towners were quite rusty. Even putting on all of our clothing and equipment and hiking up to the lift was a challenge!  We were all a bit timid during our first day on the slopes, but with some miles under our skis and some much needed equipment and clothing changes, day two was a huge improvement.

Shannon is a speed demon, and with a few months of powder under her new stylish skis, she has become a natural. Virginia caught on lightening fast and was the daredevil of the group, she tried to find every incline, jump and off course tree lined path on the mountain. Helene likes controlled fluid lines and took her time taking in the sport and not rushing progression. By day two, her muscles had adjusted to the movement and she no longer needed Stein Eriksen Lodge breaks. I am somewhere in between.  My skiing goal is to stay in control and avoid injury.

With positive attitudes and continuous encouragement, the four of us girls were able to enjoy a fabulous yet challenging sport as a group. There are very few sports in which four people with varying skill levels can stick together and all have an amazing experience. We, along with hundreds of spring-breakers and locals, enjoyed the beautiful snow covered trails, fresh Utah air and wonderful hospitality of Deer Valley employees. It was amazing for me to see the number of athletic adults and children taking part in such a rigorous sport—and loving every minute of it.

78th La Jolla Rough Water Swim
September 7th, 2008

I signed up for the 1 mile La Jolla Rough Water swim race after hearing about the event this summer during my visit to the East Coast. I figured my first week back in San Diego prior to the start of fall semester would allow me to get settled and provide plenty of race preparation time—maybe I could even squeeze in a swim practice or two. My good friend Richard also registered for the race.  Both of us opted for the 1 mile swim; the 3 mile Gatorman race was another option.

My wave went off at 11:00 am, a perfect San Diego start time. I was able to sleep in, eat breakfast, and even had time for my morning Starbucks routine—a Chai Tea Latte and newspaper.  The weather was perfect—sunny, mild and clear. Richard and I arrived at La Jolla Cove for pre-race registration and body marking. We decided to venture out in the ocean for a little warm-up. Since the event was non-wetsuit, the Pacific Ocean really woke us up when we dove in!  I couldn’t help but notice the brightly-colored fish swimming right below us—it was amazing.  We did a short warm-up and headed for the staging area.

I followed the women aged 18-39 down to the Cove and lined up for the start. There were about 200 women anxiously waiting, full of great energy and excitement for the race. A rescue boat showed us the course and we heard the announcer say “take your mark.” We were off! The start was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. It was a sea of flailing arms and legs, aggressively sprinting for the first buoy. I have done many open water swims in triathlons, but have never been a part of a start so intense. It took about 500 meters for the group to eventually spread out.  Once it did, the swim went very well.

The course was very easy to navigate—only two turns, each one marked by large balloons.  I was able to site off the girls swimming out in front and stayed straight the entire time. When I rounded the last balloons, shore was straight ahead of me. With about 500 meters to go, I put my head down and swam hard into the beach. About 100 meters offshore, I swam through huge kelp beds, which made my sprint a little harder. Once on land, I was about 50 feet from the finish line and needed to do some beach running to officially cross the finish line.  My final time was 24:51.

Following the women’s one mile was the men’s. Richard did an awesome job with a time of 23:56—especially since the only swimming he does these days is with a surfboard. The event was a unique experience and a definite “must-do” for next year.